The Leipzig Autumn Fair 1969

These stamps were issued along with the cover on 27.8.1969 to commemorate the Leipzig Autumn Fair in 1969.

The stamp highlights household goods which was one of themes of this Fair.

Thank you Marco for the FDC.

Moshe Dayan

Moshe Dayan (20 May 1915 – 16 October 1981) was an Israeli military leader and politician. The fourth Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces (1953–58), he became a fighting symbol to the world of the new State of Israel.  He went on to become Defense Minister and later Foreign Minister of Israel.

Moshe Dayan became one of Israel’s most famous men. Moshe Dayan found fame as a military leader associated with victories that were seemingly impossible within the Middle East conflicts. Dayan developed the aura of a military ‘superman’. Dayan’s friendship with Ben-Gurion had elevated him to a high military/political status in Israel. From 1953, aged 38, Dayan was appointed as Chief of Staff. He held the post until 1958. It was Dayan who held military sway in the 1956 Suez Crisis. He attacked Egypt and reached the Suez Canal and the mouth of the Gulf of Aqaba in less than one week. Such military success earned him legendary status in Israel. His skill in organising and preparing the army for speedy attacks was seen again in 1967 in the Six-Day War. In this war, Dayan assumed that the Arab nations would attack Israel. Rather than wait to be attacked, he attacked them.

On Monday June 5th, 1967, Israel attacked her neighbours. By June 11th, their military power had been severely weakened. Days prior to the attacks of June 5th, Dayan had been appointed Minister of Defence. The success of the Six-Day War was such that he held this political position until 1974. He oversaw the attacks by the Egyptian forces in the Yom Kippur War of 1973. Initially, Israel was taken by surprise. Such was the skill of Dayan, that the war ended in what was an effective stalemate (though many had believed Egypt would be victorious after the success of their initial attacks).

Thank you Merja for this FDC. I have been an admirer of Moshe Dayan ever since the 6 day war of '67, when I was a young Lieutenant in the Navy.

Easter 8.3.2013

The 2013 Easter stamp features a brightly colored rooster that carries a willow catkin in his beak and has an Easter egg at his feet. TheEaster Rooster stamp sheet, designed by Katja Saario and released on 8.3.2013, contains ten 1st class stamps. According to the Finnish Easter tradition, it is the rooster that lays chocolate eggs and hides them for the children to find on Easter Sunday. In church art, the rooster is a symbol of vigilance and endurance, and it stands on the top of the bell tower of many churches. 

Thank you Ella for this lovely FDC.

25 Years of the Berlin Wall

This First Day Cover commemorates the 25^th Anniversary of the Building of the Berlin Wall by the East Germans in 1961. The Berlin Wall(Berliner Mauer) was a barrier constructed by the German Democratic Republic (GDR, East Germany) starting on 13 August 1961, that completely cut off (by land) West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin. The barrier included guard towers placed along large concrete walls, which circumscribed a wide area (later known as the "death strip") that contained anti-vehicle trenches, "fakir beds" and other defenses. The Eastern Bloc claimed that the wall was erected to protect its population from fascist elements conspiring to prevent the "will of the people" in building a socialist state in East Germany. In practice, the Wall served to prevent the massive emigration and defection that marked Germany and the communist Eastern Bloc during the post-World War II period.

The Berlin Wall was officially referred to as the "Anti-Fascist Protection Rampart" (Antifaschistischer Schutzwall) by GDR authorities, implying that neighbouring West Germany had not been fully de-Nazified. Marco gave me this card.

Tabil International Exhibition in Tel Aviv 1957

This miniature sheet, Israel's second, was issued to coincide with the Tabil International Exhibition in Tel Aviv. It contains 4 triangular stamps, rouletted.

Depicted on the sheet is a Mosaic showing an allegorical illustration of the sun surrounded by the twelve signs of the Zodiac, from the floor of the Ancient Synagogue of Bet Alfa near Mount Gilboa in the Jezreel Valley. It was discoverd during excavations in 1929.

The show Logo is top left corner of the first day cover,while the Israel Post logo is bottom right. Running stags everywhere, also on the postmarks.

Thank you Merja for this lovely FDC.

Six Finnish actors to get their own stamps 4.3.2013

To celebrate the centennial of the Finnish Actor’s Federation (Suomen Näyttelijäliitto, or SNL),  Itella Posti Oy is released a stamp booklet that features six renowned Finnish actors on 4^th March 2013.  The actors to be immortalized in the stamps are Ritva Valkama, Esko Salminen, Outi Mäenpää, Martti Suosalo, Krista Kosonen, and Aku Hirviniemi.

Klaus Welp, who designed the stamp booklet, decided to approach the subject from a modern perspective that pays tribute to the long tradition of the acting profession. The challenge lay in arranging six artists, all still very much in the limelight, on the same stamp sheet, says Welp. The booklet’s cover also displays SNL’s centennial logo, designed by Arja Karhumaa.

The actors featured on the stamps were selected by Itella’s stamp committee, which is composed of seven members. After lengthy deliberations, they decided that the jubilee stamps should feature popular actors from various generations – actors who represent the entire spectrum of their profession in theaters, films, and television, says Petri Aaltonen, who chairs the stamp committee.

Each actor was involved in the illustration of their own stamp by choosing a performance or role that was particularly meaningful for them. The roles featured on the stamps have also been memorable for audiences.

• Ritva Valkama’s choice fell on a picture from the play Ihmisen osa, which has been running at Helsinki City Theatre since 2011.
• Esko Salminen’s stamp features a photo from a performance of King Lear, which ran at the Finnish National Theatre in 2005.
• Outi Mäenpää settled on a picture of her role in the movie Black Ice, which had its premiere in 2007.
• Martti Suosalo’s stamp features a photo of him performing the one-man show Diary of a Madman, which has been staged in several different theaters since 2009.
• The picture in Krista Kosonen’s stamp shows her in her role as Anna Karenina; the play ran in Turku City Theatre in 2010.
• Aku Hirviniemi’s picture depicts him in his role as construction superintendent Timo Harjakainen – Hirviniemi’s creation for the sketch character competition in MTV3’s Putous show in 2011.

Thank you Ella for the lovely FDC. 

Architecture 7.4.1982

This third issue in a series depicting architecture issued on 7^th April, 1982, with: Alberton, Auckland; Caccia Birch, Palmerston North; railway station, Dunedin; and the post office, Ophir. This lovely FDC was given to me by my dear friend Maria.

Alberton, Auckland - 20c
Built in 1867 by Allan Taylor who came to New Zealand as a boy, having lived in India and Scotland.  Essentially, 'Alberton' was a farmhouse, with a timber frame and gabled building of 11 rooms with a verandah and open balcony.  Additions were made in the late 1860s and again in 1890, giving 'Alberton' much of its character and uniqueness.  Today, 'Alberton' retains its Victorian furnishings without much change.  It shows clearly how a 19th century land-owning family lived.

Caccia Birch, Palmerston North - 25c
Located by the Hokowhitu Lagoon, 'Caccia Birch' began as a modest dwelling in 1893 and was added to throughout the years.  From 1921, the property was owned by the Caccia Birch family who gave it to the Government in 1937.  It was used for various purposes and for a period served as a convalescent home until made available to Massey University.

Dunedin Railway Station - 30c
Built in 1904 at a cost of $239,000, it is regarded as the city's grandest public building.  The station has a most unusual ticket office with white tiled walls, ceramic panels and a mosaic floor depicting Victorian railway engines.

Post Office, Ophir - 35c
Built in 1886, is of considerable historical and architectural interest to Central Otago.  The interior retains the atmosphere of the early days and still has a postal box of the Victorian period.  The post office is now under the control of the Historic Places Trust.